Frustrated Lakers claim that fouls are not being called evenly:
Phoenix — When questioned about the free throw differential in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 123-113 defeat to the Phoenix Suns on Sunday, LeBron James simply laughed.
According to ESPN Stats & Information, Phoenix attempted 19 free throws against Los Angeles’ eight, a season low for the Lakers and tying the fewest such attempts in any game since James joined the organization in 2018.
While James was frustrated, his coach, Darvin Ham, was enraged.
“I’m not one to use referees as an excuse,” he remarked. “But it’s becoming increasingly difficult due to the inconsistency. I’m seeing our troops make the same contact with them as we’re meant to. “And the whistle is not being blown.”
L.A. entered the game averaging 24.7 free throws per game as a team, the sixth most in the league.
“That’s something we focus on, trying to win the free throw line every game,” Ham said. “And so that’s tough. I’m telling my guys to drive downhill; we’re trying to love and live in the paint. And you’re not getting calls. I see guys with their hands in our guys’ ribs or swinging, swiping at their heads, trying to block the shot but not getting the ball, but getting a piece of the body. And it’s not being called, as simple as that.
“So, we have to figure out ways to not let that be a problem, but it’s tough. Again, it’s frustrating when there’s so much inconsistency. “It’s aggravating when there is so much inconsistency.”
The Lakers attempted zero free throws in the second half on Sunday, the first time one of James’ teams has done so since December 2015.
“A lot of people, a lot of coaches, and a lot of teams are like, ‘That’s all the Lakers do is get to the free throw line,'” James stated. “There’s this notion going around that all we do is go to the free throw line. I mean, we have attackers. That is what we do. We’ve got attackers. Yes, we shoot from the perimeter, but we don’t shoot 40 or 50 three-pointers a game.
We aren’t that team. We do not have the luxury of becoming that team. So we’re pretty skilled at putting it into the paint.
“To have eight free throw attempts is clearly not us. I know I got smacked a handful of times tonight that weren’t called. But it is what it is.
James, who averages 5.4 free throw attempts per game, was 1-for-4 at the line. Anthony Davis, a Lakers big man who averages 6.9 free throw attempts per game, made none for the first time this season.
“Our lives revolve around getting to the line. “We attack the basket,” Davis explained. “Especially with how much we struggle from the three, we try to stay in the paint and make it to the line. I’m not sure if the referees simply missed it or if they weren’t fouling. I believed I was fouled several times. But that’s part of our character, our DNA, going to the line and players picking up rhythms like that and then playing from there.”
According to ESPN Stats & Info, Davis went more than 40 minutes without attempting a free throw for the first time in his career.
“Our lives revolve around getting to the line. We attack the basket,” Davis added. “Given how much we struggle with the three, we try to remain in the paint and go to the line. I’m not sure if the officials just missed it or if they weren’t fouling. I assumed I had been fouled several times. But that’s part of our DNA: getting to the line, having guys pick up rhythms like that, and then playing from there.
According to ESPN Stats & Info, Davis played over 40 minutes without attempting a free throw for the first time in his career.
